The Foster Brothers
by The Groovy Fish
Summary: It's been three years since Ethan saw his brother; three very long years. But when Ethan's uncle disappears, he is more determined to find what happened to his uncle and long lost brother. But what does it have to do with the Teen Titans?
1. Chapter 1

_PARIS__, FRANCE, EUROPE_

_01:34 am_

When Gregory Clarkson entered the old hideout he couldn't believe his eyes. When he had been told it what it was like down here he hadn't believed a word they had said. He'd brushed off the rumours of unearthly creatures in the darkness and monsters stalking the dank dark corridors. He discarded the stories of the disappearances and the cold statues of ice that were there one minute and gone the next.

"Shit." That was all he could say as he helped his accomplices down the old secret ladder entrance.

"Is that the only word that is in your vocabulary?" asked Rasheedah Pamengo as she reached the bottom of the ladder brushing away his helping hand, she was a tall and graceful woman with long dark brown hair and captivating emerald eyes, apparently she had trained to be an acrobat to represent Belize in the Olympics.

He just smiled a charming smile "Well, there's 'Wanna go for a drink?' and 'How about dinner?' but they haven't been as successful in getting your attention."

Rasheedah rolled her eyes, smacking the light stick she had pulled from her utility belt against his head and as the light stick began to glow before willingly walking into the dark, the light slowly breaking the blackness that cut her off from the other explorers.

Chico Martinez jumped from the third step on the ladder and laughed heartily, although no-one was sure of the reason "That's because she's not interested, pal. You need to wake up a smell the failure!" The Mexican thre back his head and laughed again, his shoulder length black hair flying back a few seconds after his head as if it was delayed somehow.

Alice Westwood was the last down the ladder, her blonde hair was tied in a ponytail and bobbed up and down as she walked "Professionalism people, please? We were all sent here to do a job and we will do the job no matter what emotion ties connect us, separate us or in any other way relate to one another. Now everyone quiet."

The trio caught up with Rasheedah soon enough, each with a light stick in one hand, and soon they were deep into the catacombs. The walls were metal and cold, spiders webs and rat hovels lined the sides of the walls and the group stayed as far into the centre as they could. It had been a long time since anyone had entered into this dark dungeon of danger. A cold wind blew past them, carrying a few spiders with them but none of them screamed just brushed the sticky cloak of web off a kept walking into darkness.

"This must continue to go on all underParis!" exclaimedChicoin an attempt to make conversation.

"QuietChico," whisperedAlice"Remember, professionalism."

Suddenly a door came in their sights up ahead "We've found it!" cried Rasheedah running towards the door, she stopped halfway to it.

"What is it?" asked Gregory

Aliceedged forward "Sheedah?"

Rasheedah looked as if she was frozen solid, like a statue. Alice turned to Chico and nodded and the Mexican headed back the way they came. Alice pulled on Gregory's arm nodding back to the small speck of light that was Chico, his running footsteps were the only sound in the old hideaway and their echo stayed with them like ghost of his presence.

"No, we can't just leave her." protested Gregory.

"She's been flash frozen, like everyone else who came in here,"Alicelooked back and could no longer seeChico"We have to go Greg."

Gregory walked towards Rasheedah, his heart pounding like a drum, "She can't be gone forever. How could she be gone?"

"There is no way we can help her here."Alicereplied, her voice getting quieter.

It was then the sound of machinery whirled into motion and a large cog fells in front of Gregory, nearly squashing him from a falling hive of wasps along with the wall they had been living in. Suddenly the whole place was falling around them.

"The machine's dead!"Aliceshouted but Gregory could still not hear her "Sheedah was the last one, it's out of juice now, the whole place is done for! The whole place is falling part!"

The walls collapsed into on them and the ceiling fell down. The rumbled covered them like a blanket of snow. That night there was an earthquake in Paris as the lair of The Brotherhood of Evil collapsed.


	2. Chapter 2

_THE FOSTER RESIDENCE, SAN-FRANSISCO, CALIFRONIA, USA_

_18:23_

Ethan arrived home at midday. He'd been hanging out with Naomi and Owen at the mall and had also done a bit of shopping; a new notebook for himself, some cheese dinner tonight and a bar of green soap for the bathroom. Ethan slid his key into the keyhole and turned slowly, the anticipation of seeing his Dad after three longs weeks at a conference making his hand shake. Ethan placed the carrier bag down and used his left hand to hold his right hand steady enough for him to turn the key. Ethan found his mother in the kitchen.

"Do you have that cheese?" she asked.

Ethan took it out of the bag "Gorgonzola, just as you asked.

"Perfect!" she squealed and took it from his hand in exchange for a kiss on the forehead.

"Is Dad in?" he asked.

The housewife continued to busy herself in the kitchen grating cheese, tasting soup and browsing through the spice rack as if the simple task of locating the right her was taking up all of her brain power.

"Is Dad in? Ethan asked again, but louder.

Ethan's mother sighed "He called me about an hour ago, he said there's been an emergency at work, something about some dodgy photo's someone sent in from Gotham about… Oh, who's that heroes name, the one with the… Oh I forget their names… there's too many of them. I'm not as good as Owen; he knows all of them, doesn't he? Oh, he's amazing he is…"

"Don't change the subject Mom," Ethan called out loudly to steal her attention away from her ramblings "that may have worked when I was five or six but now I'm sixteen it's going to take a lot more than superheroes to distract me from the fact that my Dad doesn't give a shit about me!"

Ethan threw the bag down on the floor and walked out of the kitchen, away from the light and warmth of his mother's home cooking, and into the vast empty hallway leaving the hope of his Dad, actually spending time with him, being a real father, over his work.

"Oh Ethan, don't say that!" cried his mother making sure she had turned off the oven before she ran after him, arms outstretched for a hug.

Ethan turned to her as she slowed her run and stood in the doorway of the kitchen looking at the cold look in his eyes as if she was looking at her reflection in the ice of a frozen lake. The woman's left arm jumped onto the wrist of her right hand which seemed as if was struggling to free itself from the grip of it's partner. She had seen that look before on another man's face, and not too long ago. She collapsed into a heap and burst into tears. Ethan ran to catch her and held her tight trying to contain her frantic flailing. As his mother's wailing drowned out the sweet song of the doorbell, Ethan stroked her hair as her eyes poured out tears as if they had been held back by a dam. It was as if her whole self was dissolving. She screamed out, pushing Ethan away, screaming his father's name.

"No, Joseph! No!" she cried "No, I don't want to! No!"

"Mom, it's me! It's Ethan! Dad's not here. He's at work! There was an emergency, remember Mom?"

All of a sudden she stopped, her makeup ran down her face as if it wanted to escape her brokenness and her eyes looked as if they had been painted red to match the colour of her face.

"Ethan? I'm sorry, I don't know what-" she tired to speak but she couldn't she just walked to the bathroom very, very, slowly and locked herself inside.

Ethan walked into the kitchen and finished dinner, he knew the recipe well, his Mom's spicy pasta bake. It was a family recipe, passed down from generation to generation. She had decided to try out a new cheese to grate on top, an effort to add some spice in her world of routine and uniform. Ethan's Mom never came out of the bathroom and Ethan didn't dare to enter or even knock, he just stood outside the entrance waiting for her to come out for dinner.

_TWELVE HOURS EARLIER…_

The alarm clock danced and sang with all it's might but Ethan would not wake up and as the timepiece tumbled from its place and hit the ground Ethan turned over. His eyes slowly opened as the clock's song faded back into mundane ticking.

"Why am I up this early?" he groaned at the clock but no reply came apart from the usual ticking.

Ethan got up from his bed, walked to the window and opened it as slowly as any living being could do. The window pane was stiff and it wouldn't budge but after what seemed like an age Ethan lifted his window open and collapsed back onto his bed. He lay there for a few minutes, just staring at the ceiling, and when he came to his senses he wondered if he had fallen asleep. He spun onto his belly and spun himself around to look for his clock. It was on the floor on the opposite side that it was supposed to be on. Obviously his mother had 'tidied' his room again and put the clock in the wrong place. Ethan tried to stretch his arms out and grab the clock but he was unable to reach so he rolled of his bed and picked the piece of clockwork crap up from the floor.

"Ethan! Breakfast is ready." called the sweet sound of his mother's voice from the kitchen "I made pancakes!"

Ethan's stomach rumbled but Ethan didn't care for pancakes today. He picked up the small picture frame up from its pride of place; his desk. All Ethan cared about was that today was the day that his Dad was coming home. He would finally see his Dad again after what felt like forever. They could be a family again,

"Coming," Ethan called out as he slipped on his dressing gown and walked out of his bedroom stepping onto the cold wooden floor of the hallway.

Ethan lived in a small house. It wasn't very impressive to look at, inside or outside but it was cosy, comfortable and well furnished. There were only two bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen and a lounge and a small table in the corner of the kitchen was often used for eating meals. When Ethan walked into the kitchen his mother was eating a petit pile of pancakes whilst opposite her was a stack of fifteen or so pancakes covered in maple syrup.

"Oh Ethan, I put the maple syrup on already. I knew you'd want maple syrup, you always want maple syrup." She smiled at him with her perfect white teeth"Dig in then!"

Ethan sat down and ate his pancakes with the occasional sip of orange juice whilst trying to remember the dream he had last night. It was something about his brother, Aiden, but that's all he could remember.

"Are you feeling okay Ethan?" asked the boy's mother from across the table "You seem like you're still asleep."

"I feel like I'm still asleep." He muttered before stuffing in the last piece of the last pancake into his mouth.

His mother giggled like a schoolgirl "Well someone was hungry!" she exclaimed looking over at Ethan's empty plate in shock.

Ethan looked over at his mother's plate; she had barely started "I'm going to meet Naomi and Owen at the mall today. Naomi wants to buy a dress because she won that competition I told you about."

His mother seemed to jump back in shock "She won? Oh that's wonderful! I've never been a fan of classical music but I'm sure she'll enjoy Jump City. Lovely place, that's where those kids live, oh, you know the ones…"

"Yeah," Ethan said unenthusiastically "I know…"

His mother folded her cutlery together, half of the pancake still on her plate "Are you sure you're okay Ethan?"

"It's just Owen is going to Jump City for a few days too to see some Titan's museum or something and-"

"Oh, my little Ethan feels left out!" she cried and jumped up to give him a big hug and a sloppy kiss on the forehead "Don't you worry. Your father should be coming home today, maybe we could drive to Jump City and spend a day or two there. Hmmm… does that sound good? Just you, me and your father: the three of us."

Ethan smiled but still remained unenthusiastic "Sure, that'll be great."

"See, now you'll be able to tell your friends you'll be going Jump City soon too!" Ethan's mum pilled up the plates and headed to the sink "Now I've got to go see Brenda today, she wants my verdict on her wedding dress, did I tell you she's getting married?"

"Yes," said Ethan as he finished of his orange juice.

"Oh, she's going to look so beautiful," sighed Ethan's mother as she started the washing up "I'll see you later yes?"

"Yes, Mom." droned Ethan walking out the room "I'll see you later."

_FIVE HOURS EARLIER…_

"Oh my God!" cried Naomi jumping from her seat on their table in the park outside the mall "You're going to be coming to Jump City! This is going to be a-maze-ing!"

Owen laughed "Just watch out for Naomi and her three thousand shopping bags blocking the sidewalk!"

Naomi thumped him hard on the arm "Shut it dork! At least I'm not going to the Titan's museum."

Ethan rolled his eyes "Why do all our trips to the mall end up like this?" Ethan took another bite out the burger they had just brought from Burger King.

Naomi pulled back his straight brown-blonde hair from his ears and whispered into his ear "It's because he doesn't know how to be sophisticated…" she turned back to Own "Because he's a nerd!"

Owen sighed and brushed his hand through his short black hair before pushing his square glasses further up his nose "At least I have a hobby that is concerned with the national, international, and interplanetary issues that involve our glorious planet Earth. But what are you concerned about? What colour to dye your hair next?"

Ethan swallowed "The red looks good on you by the way."

Naomi tossed her crimson hair back her curls bouncing in appreciation of the comment "Thank-you Ethan."

"You don't seem very happy dude." Owen remarked changing the subject quickly.

Naomi leant back; to examine Ethan "He's right, for once. Is there anything you want to talk about?"

"Like what?" Ethan asked, his mood still deflated since the morning.

Owen tired to hold back his hysterical laughed "Like Mary Jones?" he managed before letting his laughter out, spraying spit everywhere.

"Owen!" cried Naomi "Don't even joke about that! He's eating as well!"

"What about Mary Jones?" Ethan asked, completely bemused.

Owen and Naomi looked at each other "You don't know?" asked Owe "You really don't know what I'm on about?"

"No…" Ethan said slowly, his eyes frantically moving in-between his friends face, each plastered with hilarity.

Naomi put a hand on his shoulder "She asked you out. She posted it one Facebook as well, on your wall. I don't know if it's a prank or a dare or whatever but that is just so weird."

"Why? Why would anyone do that?" cried Ethan standing up "They know that… she and me… you know."

"Are in love?" Owen teased.

"No, just no." Ethan stated and the three friends quietened down.

They were silent for a while, just enjoying each others company for a second or two before they continued their conversation.

"What is it though?" asked Naomi "Is it your brother, do you miss him?"

"He's been gone three years, of course he misses him." Owen replied on his friends behalf "Wouldn't you if your brother just walked out on you? And on your birthday of all days, who does something like that?"

"It's a bit of that, it's just…" Ethan faded off and stood up "Dad's coming back today."

Naomi picked up her shopping bags and stood up next to him "I'm sure he'll be delighted to see you. He loves you, anyone can see it."

"I just wish he was around more often." Ethan breathed

Owen stood up also picking up his comic book he's purchased "Look mate, he's your Dad and I know he's committed to his work but I'm sure he'll come back today and see you."

Ethan sat back down again "He's been gone three weeks, on a two day retreat. If he cared about me, if he wanted to see me, he would have come back already!"

Ethan's phone vibrated in his pocket and he pulled it out faster than Naomi or Owen could see.

"Hello?" Ethan called down the phone

"Hello, dear." called his mother from the pocket device "It's me, its Mom here! I was just wondering if you could get me some gorgonzola cheese for dinner. It might be hard but I've tried been looking for over an hour now! Also do you think you can get some soap? You know the one your father likes, the green one?"

"I know the one." Ethan confirmed "Are you sure Dad gonna be around tonight?" He had asked after his mother had relayed her instructions.

There was short pause followed by a long high pitched hum which melted into the word "Maybe," she replied "defiantly maybe."

Ethan rolled his eyes and his friend had looked at each other "Okay. I'll see you later!"

"Okay, dear," she chimed her words more like a song than a sentence "and don't forget- gorgonzola!"

"Told you so," Ethan stood up again "A definite maybe, always a definite maybe."

Owen patted his back "Don't worry, it'll be okay. He'll show up! I'd bet my own life on it."

"Really?" inquired Naomi.

Owen thought about the idea of a while "Well, only if I had nothing else to bet with."

Ethan looked at the floor and he heard Naomi nudge Owen in the ribs "Shut the hell up Owen look what you've done!"

"Look I'm sorry Ethan, I'm sorry dude." Own apologized nervously.

Ethan looked up at his friend "Don't worry mate. Let's just enjoy our day out as much as possible."

_THE FOSTER RESIDENCE, SAN-FRANSISCO, CALIFRONIA, USA_

_19:07_

The door bell went off again but this time Ethan heard it but when he reached the door there was not even a sign that anyone had even been outside their house let alone all the way up to the door and rung the door bell. Ethan closed the door and sighed before walking back to the bathroom slowly. He looked at the door, how dark it seemed now since when he had walked past it this morning. Ethan held his hand up ready to knock on the door but he quickly withdrew. Ethan opened his mouth to speak but he could no longer think of anything to say. He knew his parents fought. He heard them at night. But what his mother had said. Was she really as happy as with her life as she made out she was?

Ethan made his way to the door again and opened it, looking out at his street and how quiet it was this evening. He picked up his coat and texted Brenda to say that his Mom wasn't feeling very well and she needed to come around straight away. As Ethan stepped onto the door step he heard the crunch of paper crumpling up. He stood back and there it was; a coach ticket for Jump City leaving in half an hour, right on his doorstep. Ethan looked one way and then the other before picking up the ticket. It was only then he realised that a message was scribbled in black pen at the top of the ticket.

COME TO TITANS TOWER.

AIDEN.


	3. Chapter 3

_JUMP CITY COACH STATION, CALIFRONIA, USA_

_23:14_

When Ethan reached Jump City the moon was already high in the sky and every single star shone down and wondered, like many of Ethan's fellow passengers, why a sixteen year old boy was coming to Jump City with only a backpack full of clothes, a crumpled piece of paper and a lady's purse at this time at night. Ethan opened his mother purse and stared at the petty change at the bottom.

"I'm not going to find you with this Aiden," Ethan grumbled and looked left and right for a cash machine "but I'm sure Mom won't mind me using her card. She never uses it anyway."

Ethan searched a good ten minutes for a cash machine but the streets around the coach station were filled mostly with fancy boutiques and shops. He decided he would look for a bank in the morning. From the coach station he walked through the streets, trying to find a place to rest for the night. Eventually, Ethan settled in the doorway of a pet shop for the night, huddling as close to the door as he could for warmth. He felt stupid now. Instead of simply throwing clothes into his bag, he should have stopped and thought about what he would need. It had never occurred to Ethan to pick up food or something to keep him warm. He had only thought to take money and not even his own money, but his mothers.

"What were you thinking Ethan?" he asked himself.

As he sat all alone, Ethan realised he was in a big city all on his own. He was venerable and he was alone. Ethan tried not to think of such things as robbers, paedophiles and villains that walked the dark streets of Jump City at night and who would see him as an easy target. Instead Ethan thought of being reunited with his brother at Titans Tower. He imagined finding out what he was doing there and being given a grand tour. Then taking him back home to Mom and Dad would be there, ready to greet them with open arms. Then they could be a family again, the four of them. Things would be just as they should be once again. Soon enough Ethan was sleep and his thoughts seeped into his dreams and his dreams kept him safe the whole night through. He was so safe that even the cold could not make shiver. Ethan's dreams were warm, happy and safe and so was Ethan.

_JUMP CITY, CALIFORNIA, USA_

_10:12_

Ethan awoke with a start as a car horn blared as the vehicle zoomed past him with a police car dashing after it. The two cars sent dust swirling in a miniature tornado across the sidewalk and into Ethan who promptly brushed himself down and stood up to have a better look at where he had ended up. The passers-by looked down at him as they walked past, a few threw coins in the small pile of money he had generated from the generous residents of Jump City who had passed him whilst he was sleeping.

"Thank-you," He said as a lady in blue tracksuit threw him a quarter before jogging off again.

Ethan collected up the money and placed it with the rest of the change in his mother's purse before he threw his bag over his shoulder and stepped out onto the busy street, looking back to see the pet shop. It looked as if was undertaking some sort of refurbishment, which was most probably the reason why Ethan had managed to sleep there without being disturbed. It didn't take long for Ethan to find Titans tower. It was one of the cities most popular landmarks. Within half an hour of leaving the pet shop Ethan had found his was to the beach. He looked over the sea at the T-shaped building perched on top of its island like some sort of obscurely shaped bird on a perch. Ethan walked down the road by the side of the beach until he came to where the road veered off to the left, away from the beach. Straight ahead, however, was a plaza filled with various café's. However Ethan settled with a burger from a burger van which he paid for using some of the money he'd collected. Ethan sat down on a bench looking out towards the sea, polished off his burger greedily and then started to read the newspaper from this morning that some had left on the bench.

Sure he wanted to see his brother, but he couldn't see any way to get over to the island so he might as well enjoy his time in Jump City. There should be some sort of catastrophe in the city for the Titans to stop sooner or later and when there was he would swoop in afterwards and ask about Aiden.

"Is anyone sitting here?" asked a voice from in front of him, Ethan lowered his paper, it was the lady in the blue tracksuit again.

"No," Ethan replied, shuffling up just in case she wanted a little more room, or avoid his smell.

She sat down, stretching her legs out and lifting her hand up to the sky, she peered over at the paper "Ah. Did you hear about those Hero Historians?" she pointed to the article "They wanted to get those frozen Brotherhood people from Paris, poor souls, they never go out. Except one of them of course, that Mexican guys, Chico something or other. There was a guy from San Francisco, not far from here. I don't know if they've told his family yet."

"San Francisco?" breathed Ethan, was it his Dad? Maybe that was the emergency "Do you remember his name?"

She turned her head to him "What is it to you?"

Ethan dug through his mother purse "I'm from there, I might know them." He pulled out a dollar someone had left for him "I can pay you."

The woman smiled, took the dollar and placed it back inside the purse "I think you need the money more than I do. I think his name was Clarkson, something Clarkson…"

"Clarkson…" the name rung a bell in Ethan's head and it was a while before he remembered where he had heard it before "That's Uncle Greg's surname!"

The woman jumped up as if someone had poked her bottom with a pin "Gregory Clarkson! That was it, he's one of the people still trapped there!"

"My uncle…" Ethan muttered, he couldn't believe that his uncle was there, he hadn't seen him at all, only heard about him from his mother "but Mom said he worked in real estate not some Hero Historian!"

The woman pulled out a leaflet from her pocket "I remember now, they're going to build a memorial for them outside the new Titan Museum because the helped the curator, Mr. Creak to supply Titan memorabilia!"

"I better check that out." Ethan said eagerly packing away his things "Thank-you for everything Miss…?"

"Dr. Heart Dr. Donna Heart." She said shaking his hand "I'm a doctor at Jump City Hospital. I've got the morning off, doctors orders! Not mine of course. Apparently I've been over working myself. What's your name?"

"Ethan Foster." Their handshake met a natural end.

"Do you have anywhere to live Ethan Foster?" she asked looking at the state of him, it wasn't that he was particularly dirty, just a bit scruffy.

Ethan looked at the floor "No, but I'm hoping to find my brother. He's over at Titan's Tower."

"Well, good luck with that." She said with a chuckle "Call me if you do need anything though."

Ethan took the card that she had pulled from her pocket "Thank-you."

Ethan turned and walked away towards one of the café's. He was getting thirsty and it would be good to buy a bottle of water to keep him hydrated. Suddenly, it dawned on Ethan he had no idea how to get around Jump City let alone to the Titans Museum or Titans Tower. He stopped suddenly and turned to see if Dr. Heart was anywhere to be seen but she had already jogged on to her next destination. He couldn't believe he had forgotten to ask for directions. Ethan looked for another friendly face to ask for. Then, as fate would have it, a girl of around his own age with long blonde hair walked straight into him. They both fell as if they were reflections of each other and lay on the floor for a few seconds until getting up on their own. The girl was pretty and wore a school uniform; a white shirt, a black tie and a dark blue skirt. Her eyes were big and blue and reminded Ethan of the ocean that lay between him and the Titans Tower.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried before Ethan could even think about opening his mouth in reply "I didn't look where I was going!"

"No, I shouldn't have been standing in such a stupid place…" Ethan was going to ask for directions but he was distracted by a small rock that had started floating a few centimetres of the ground; it rose and fell before rolling away from the girl who seemed oblivious to it "Did you see that?" Ethan asked

"See what?" she asked looking around everywhere apart from where the rock had been.

"The rock, did you see it?" Ethan asked again pointing at the floor where the rock had been "It was moving, off the ground!" Ethan jumped on the floor and crawled over to the rock and picked it up, examining ever inch of it to make sure it hadn't been some beetle or insect disguised as a rock.

"Don't' be stupid." The girl said walking away in laugher.

By the time Ethan looked up, she was lost in the crowd. He looked around for her but obviously this was a popular place for to hang out for her school friends as the area was heaving with girls and boys in the uniform; a white shirt, a black tie and a dark blue skirt. Some were at the café's, some were sitting on the benches and some were running onto the beach. It would be like finding a needle in a haystack. She could have been anywhere by now. Ethan sighed and looked back out at the sea. A speck seemed to be forming somewhere on the horizon like a boat or Titan flying home. Ethan watched it as if got closer. The speck was not a boat as it seemed to hover just slightly over the water, and it was not a low lying plane as it was far too small. However it was also not a Titan, the speck was dark and menacing and as it grew closer to land it looked more like man. Tall and intimidating with a foreboding aura radiating form him. He flew over Ethan's head and slammed into the side of an office building, rubble and glass raining down on the people standing below. People started screaming and running. Some ran into shops, some ran to the beaches, some ran into the streets and for some reason some people ran into the building itself. Ethan tried to follow the flow of people but they were running to too many direction. He saw the girl, the one with the oceanic eyes; fall on the floor, the dust of the rubble almost suited her. He ran to help her up as people still continued swarming for safety. When he reached her the dust had cleared and everyone stood still.

Many people still remained in the plaza despite the panic that had spread over everyone there. Every single one of them looked to see who had arrived, or returned, to start their reign of destruction in Jump City. As the figure emerged into the sunlight Ethan felt the girl quiver with fear as he helped her up. Ethan knew why. He knew who the figure was. He had seen him before although not in the flesh. He had thought he was long gone. He thought he was dead. Ethan's mind flashed back to a birthday party Owen had once, maybe when he was twelve. Everyone had thought he had opened the last present when his parents revealed a special present, a surprise: an action figure of one of the Titan's deadliest enemies.

Slade looked down on them hungrily as his eyes fixed on the Ethan and the girl. He laughed at their fear before he jumped down from building and came in for the kill.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: A quick note for all of you because I didn't write anything for the pervious chapters. First of all I hope that you've enjoyed the story so far, it's my first story on here in a long time. Secondly I hope you will find this chapter exciting, I wouldn't say I'm the best at writing fighting scenes but I think this is okay. If there is anything that you don't understand or anything you think could be improved then please let me know. This might be the last chapter for a while. I've been fairly consistent with posting chapters the past few days because I've had nothing else to do but I should be busier in the next week or so.**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

**TheGroovyFish**

* * *

><p>Everything happened so fast. As soon as Slade's feet hit the ground the girl was up and moving, fuelled by fear and the advancing possibility of death. Ethan on the other hand was frozen. His feet fixed into the concrete, he was a statue. Slade continued to run towards him as if there was nothing there, as if he wasn't running towards him but just to the area just behind him. Slade sent Ethan went flying across the plaza, some people screamed others ran after him, some even ran towards Slade but everyone was moving again. Ethan seemed unsure of what to do, his arms and legs danced around as if he was trying swim through the oxygen. The boy landed on the beach, grains of sand covering his clothes, his face and his hair. Ethan tried to stand but the shock of being thrown through the air made him stumble and he and rolled into sea, the salty taste lingered in his mouth along with the dry taste of the sand. His ribs hurt and he was sure that something may have been broken. He could sure use a friendly female doctor in a blue tracksuit to jog past around about now.<p>

Ethan looked around for someone, anyone, to help him, to defend him; however the beach had been cleared of all life. Animals and people alike had fled the scene as soon as Slade had arrived. Ethan got to his feet, taking it slowly and gasping in pain with every movement. He looked around for Slade but as soon as he raised his head the black blur that was Slade was there as if he'd been waiting for Ethan look up and realise his doom. Slade lunged for Ethan but he ducked with speed he wasn't sure anyone could possess with his injuries, and kicked Slade back against the sand. Ethan stood over him and tried to kick him but Slade leant back on his shoulders and propelled himself into Ethan, feet first. The sole of Slade's feet slammed in Ethan's chest and the force send Ethan slashing into the sea, the tide throwing him back and forth as if he were a buoy out of the briny blue. Ethan's head surfaced but his face was caught with a wave and he was thrown back under.

Slade strode into the water and struck Ethan around the face with his hand and Ethan fell back into the water again managing to cry "Help!" just before he went under.

When Ethan came up to the surface Slade was still there, looking at him coldly. He grabbed Ethan by the shirt and threw him out of the sea towards the beach. Ethan landed, his feet in the water and Slade stepped over him and onto dry land.

"Stand." He order and Ethan could do nothing but obey, what else could he do? He certainly couldn't fight Slade. He would be crushed.

Ethan stood there shivering trying to speak, but all that came out was "Sh-bla-Jooh- baa-"

Slade drew his Katana from its hilt around his waist, and drew it to Ethan, the blade just touching his neck "We meet at last Mr. Foster." He said as if he were long awaited acquaintance "I have been waiting a very long time to see you."

Ethan winced at the weapon his eyes narrowing, trying to make out the shape appearing a few meters behind Slade "But…. You…How are you…" Ethan stepped back, the water now up to his knees.

Slade laughed "I made a little deal, with a friend of Teen Titans. I've been away for a long time but I think it's about time I made my comeback, don't you?"

The sound a laser charging up buzzed from behind them "I don't think so," Cyborg yelled pointing his weapon at Slade, but at an angle so it wouldn't hurt Ethan "I think you should have stayed where you were Slade. You should have stayed in the god damn gutter where you belong!"

Slade didn't even turn his head towards Cyborg; instead he didn't take his eyes of Ethan, he just continued to stare intently at his prey "This is none of your business. Go home Titan."

"You should know I don't want to kill you Slade," Cyborg moved forward, the buzz from his laser rising in pitch when he moved "I don't like killing people but this new upgrade would melt you like popsicle-stick. Let the boy go Slade! I don't wan to do this."

Slade turned his head ever so slightly, as if he was straining to hear an irritating fly buzzing around Cyborg "What are you waiting for Titan. I doubt your little upgrade could harm me. Are you waiting for the rest of your posse Titan? Or are you just following orders?" Cyborg breathed heavier "Oh, yes. Your following orders aren't you? Does Robin want to fight me himself, hmmm? How interesting..."

There was a long and tense silence. It lasted too long and there was nothing to break it but the calmness of the tide going to and fro like the pendulum of a clock. Ethan took another step back and the water was up to his waist. Slade's head snapped back to Ethan.

"Don't think I've forgotten about you Mr. Foster." He moved so that his samurai sword was nearly touching Ethan's neck again "You took me a long time to find and I'm not letting you out of my sight." Cyborg muttered something through his communicator and Slade turned his head a full ninety degrees to his right "What was that Titan? Is back-up on the way?"

Cyborg smiled "Back-ups on the way. Right now actually." Cyborg's laser shut down and Cyborg switched arms, instantly his other arm morphed into a grappling hook and span towards Slade, locking around his body and pulling him towards Cyborg "Booya!"

Slade, in reaction to this threw his sword at Ethan but Cyborg had pulled him back so fast that he was several feet away when the sword was thrown. Ethan was yet again paralysed with fear, the sword spinning towards him. He was sure death was certain now. He closed his eyes and waited. He waited for the sharp stabbing pain, the warm red liquid oozing from his wound and then the slow coldness spreading throughout his body. But all he heard was a loud metal clang and when Ethan opened his eyes a tall flat wall of rock had burst its way through the water beneath him and blocked the sword.

"She's back…" Slade said with a chuckle "I never saw this coming."

Cyborg froze "Wait… there only one person who can do that… Was BB telling the truth? Is Terra back?"

Suddenly Slade broken free of Cyborg's grip and kicked him back across the plaza and into one of the café's he bounded over to the wall kicked it to rubble and collected his sword before sending a wave off to Ethan and jumping into the sea. It took a few seconds for Ethan to recover. He walked out of the water and up the beach, the sand clinging onto his clothes. He looked around for anyone to help him but all he found was the girl, lying unconscious on the ground in the middle of the plaza with a pile of dirt in each hand.

Cyborg came and stood next to Ethan "Terra…? Why didn't we believe BB? To think he nearly left because we didn't take him seriously… He was like my brother… why didn't I believe him?"

Then it came back to Ethan. After all the hunger, the panic, the introductions and the fighting, Ethan had forgotten all about Aiden. Why he had come here. Now he had his chance.

"I need you to take me back to the Titan's Tower." Ethan said standing up "I think my brother is there!"

"Your brother?" asked Cyborg "I don't think your brother is at the Tower."

Ethan dug into his pocket and found the note "I was given this. I was told to come here."

Cyborg took the piece of paper from Ethan's hand and examined it carefully "It seemed that Slade was interested in you. Why? I have no idea but he may have sent this to you to draw you here."

"So, Aiden isn't at Titan's Tower?" asked Ethan again, heavily disappointed yet intrigued at what Cyborg had said, why did Slade want him here and how did he know for certain that he come here if there was a possibility of finding his brother?

Cyborg picked Terra up, her small figure looked like a doll in his massive hands "No, but I'd like you to come back anyway. It would be dangerous to leave you here alone with Slade on the loose and we might be able to find your brother if he's connected with Slade. I'm sure Robin would want to speak to you about it."

"Okay." Ethan looked over at the Titan's home "How do we get over there?"

Cyborg laughed "You're not from around here are you?" he turned to Ethan, his voice taking on a more serious tone "Where are you staying? Have you got any family or friends in Jump that you're staying with?"

"No," Ethan sighed, he missed San Francisco, he missed Mom and Owen and Naomi; he missed home "I slept in a doorway of shop last night."

"Then I suppose you're coming back with us." Cyborg concluded, leading the way to his car.

Ethan followed Cyborg to his car which was parked a few meters from where he had met Dr. Heart earlier; Ethan looked at Terra "Is she going to be okay?"

"I'm not sure," Cyborg said slowly, catching a few glimpses of one of the panels on his right arm "my sensors say she's still alive but it seems as if she's in some sort of coma." He turned to Ethan a look at him, trying figure out the curious character he had rescued "Why did she help you?"

"What do you mean?" Ethan asked looking up at him curiously

Cyborg shrugged his shoulders "Well it's just BB said that she'd forgotten everything, how to use her powers, who she was, even her time as a Teen Titan. I was just wondering, why now? Why when you were in trouble?"

Ethan shrugged "I don't know. I bumped into her earlier and she didn't seem to like me much. I suppose I did help her up when Slade attacked."

Cyborg smiled "So you sorta saved her life and she saved yours, huh?"

Cyborg slid Terra into the backseat whilst Ethan sat in front and rested his head against the window. He couldn't believe how tired he felt. Cyborg started the car and within minutes of leaving the plaza Ethan was asleep. This time he no longer dreamt of his brother but being one of the Teen Titans. He was armed with Slade's sword and he, Terra and Cyborg rescued the others from the clutches of Slade himself. At the end of the dream Ethan and his new friends stood on top of the Titan's Tower and looked back at the plaza by the beach, reminiscing of that day- the day that they had first met Ethan Foster.


	5. Chapter 5

_TITAN'S TOWER, JUMP CITY, CALIFORNIA, USA_

_14:56_

Ethan woke up in a large airy room with large windows all along his left hand side looking out towards the ocean yet still part of the city was in view. The wall behind Ethan was covered with various electronic and panels assessing his medical condition as well as those of the vacant beds next to him and the one belonging to Terra. The girl looked at peace. Her hair had been careful laid out and she looked as if she were a princess out of a story book that Ethan had woken up in. Cyborg stood in one corner on the phone to someone; Ethan couldn't make out what they were saying because of this distance between them so he waited until Cyborg had finished the conversation and put the phone down.

"How long was I asleep?" Ethan asked making Cyborg spin around as fast as lightning.

"Don't do that! You scared the hell out of me!" He laughed making his was to Ethan's bedside "Only an hour or so. The others will be here soon. We were all out on different missions today."

"What sort of missions?" Ethan asked, shuffling around on the bed to get comfortable.

Cyborg smiled "Top secret missions!"

Ethan sighed "Suppose you can't tell me then?"

"Well, not really." Cyborg admitted but he sat on a chair beside Ethan bed and continued "I was supposed to be recalibrating the Tower's security system but then I saw Slade blasting through the sky like that and, well, you know the rest."

"I thought you defeated Slade. Why is he back?" Ethan asked

Cyborg sighed "Now that's a very long story… We haven't heard of him since Raven's Dad showed up a caused us trouble. I don't know why he's back though."

"You and me both," Ethan said looking out of the window, they sat there in silence for a while, just thinking "Is Raven the one from Azarath?"

"Well… sort of…." Cyborg said tapping his foot "How did you know that?" he asked

Ethan shrugged with a smile "My friend Owen, he's sort of a fan. I think he's obsessed with you guys but-"

"Does he like me?" cried Cyborg readily awaiting a shower of admiration and praise.

Ethan was a little taken back but he complied "Yeah, I think he had a life size cut out and a robot figure of you. Perhaps a plate with you on, that or a cup, I can't really remember."

"Wait," Cyborg said in sudden realisation "I didn't agree for people to distribute plates and cups with my face on them?"

"His parents got them made specially." Ethan replied "He also stole the cardboard cut out from when they were selling Titan memorabilia at the Mall. He had to do three months of community service but he got to keep so he was happy."

"Really that crazy," Cyborg boomed "maybe your friend is a little obsessed. I mean I can cope with fans but he seems a bit loopy to me."

Ethan laughed "Yeah, he can be a bit loopy sometimes. But he's always been there for me."

"It's good to have friends." Cyborg stated "It hurts loosing them though."

Ethan looked to the floor, he thought of Mary Jones and their friendship before the summer started, he thought about Dad getting all caught up with his work after Aiden moved way, he remembered the times when Mom, Dad and Aiden would spend their nights fighting "Tell me about it. My family always fought before my brother left and now my Dad doesn't even talk to me. He's more concerned with his work."

Cyborg smiled "My Dad too." He sighed, an old memory making him shudder "Takes me back to when I didn't have all these…" he faded off into a heartbroken silence but Ethan knew what he meant.

"How did it happen?" Ethan asked, hoping that taking about it may make Cyborg feel better.

"I don't want to talk about if that's okay with you." Cyborg replied coldly, his mind reeling with bitter memoires of the past.

There was a long time where everything was quiet. There was no wind and the computer hummed a little quieter. Ethan tried many times to think of something to say. The tick of the clock had hushed itself. Even a bird flying past the window did not cry out when it saw them.

"I wouldn't change it." Cyborg said at last "I would never change it. I wanted to then but I wouldn't change it now."

"Is that good?" Ethan asked.

"Yes," Cyborg replied "it's good to love yourself."

"What is your name?" Ethan asked "Your real name, I mean Cyborg isn't your real name."

"Victor, Victor Stone." Cyborg replied "It would be funny if my parents actually called me Cyborg when I was born wouldn't it?"

"No, that would just be strange." Ethan cried, shaking his head "Do you want me to call you Victor."

Cyborg shook his own head "Cyborg is my name now. Victor just reminds me of the old days and of what I've been through, it brings back too many memories."

"I'm sorry." Ethan said apologetically as Cyborg's communicator beeped as if it were saying thank-you.

Cyborg looked down at his communicator "Robin's is on his way up with BB and Star. They're probably gonna want to talk to you."

Just as Cyborg had finished his sentence Robin strode into the room in his damp uniform with his mask still on his face. Robin wasn't taking any chances. Next in was Starfire. She flew in with great speed, somersaulted in the air and looked at Ethan curiously. Last in was Beast Boy who ran past Ethan to Terra.

"Is she okay? What happened? Who was it?" he cried stroking her face, Beast Boy turned to Ethan "Tell me! What happened?"

"Hey man, calm down!" cried Cyborg "Slade was beating this dude up to."

"WHAAAT?" exclaimed Beast Boy "Slade is back?" He turned back to Terra to make sure she was okay, his eyes not blinking for second in case something came to steal her away.

"This is most troubling!" Starfire cried "Has anyone notified Raven?"

"She's visiting her mother." Robin explained "She's safe whilst she's there and she'll come straight back here afterwards. We'll tell her when she comes back. No need to worry her further." Robin turned to Ethan "Are you sure it was Slade?"

Ethan nodded "Positive. My friend's a fan of yours. He knows all the villains. He showed me a picture once and he has an action figure."

"How curious," Starfire chimed joyfully "and what age is this friend of yours?"

"Seventeen…" Ethan replied slightly embarrassed.

"Whoa," was all that Robin could say

"I presume that this is not normal in Earth culture?" Starfire asked.

"Control Freak is much older and is still obsessed with us." Cyborg suggested.

"Owen said that Control Freak isn't a real villain," Ethan said uncertain that the Titans would see things his way "more of a troublemaking fan."

"You got that right." Robin said in agreement "Now, back to Slade."

"Indeed, where was the last place of which you saw him?" Starfire asked landing at the foot of Ethan's bed.

"He jumped into the sea," Ethan said thinking hard, he was still quite tired after the days events "that's the last time I saw him. He waved at me and then just disappeared under the water."

"He could be anywhere by now then." Robin said thoughtfully.

"I am confused," Starfire stated "wouldn't one normally waved at one's friend not someone whom they were attacking?"

"That's a good point," Robin looked at Ethan and he could tell Robin's eyes were full of suspicion "why did he wave at you?"

Ethan couldn't think, there was too much pressure on his answer "I… I…"

Beast Boy spun around "I knew it! I knew you were in on this! Why did you hurt Terra? What did she do to you?"

"Hold up a minute guys," Cyborg shouted gathering his friend's attention "Slade said 'we meet at last' as if he'd been waiting to meet Ethan for a while but not actual met him before."

"It could have easily been an act…" Robin grumbled.

Suddenly the ceiling broke above Ethan and a maggot the size of a small dog landed on his lap along with a small pile of rubble.

"Silkie, you have come to find your k'norfka!" she cried lunging for the mutant moth larvae which had already settle on Ethan's lap spreading its thick slimy saliva over his lower body, Starfire giggled "He cannot be an ally of the Slade if Silkie would cover him with his mucus of amity!"

"Is that what its called now?" Ethan said wiping the goop off his clothes as Silkie slowly devoured the pieces of the ceiling dodging the loving embrace of Starfire.

"Indeed. I have been delving into the most enchanting of Earth books, the Thesaurus, in a search for new words!" Starfire cried "It taste most delicious with a glass of mustard to accompany it!"

"Did she just say delicious?" Ethan asked nervously, wondering what else Starfire like to eat.

"We're getting a little off topic again." Beast Boy pointed out "Why is Slade back!"

Robin turned to his team "I don't know, but we're going to do everything we can to find out, Ethan, you stay here and get some rest."

As the group left the room Cyborg turned back at the door "Oh, I'll ask them about your brother but I don't think we know anyone called Aiden."

"Thank-you," Ethan said with a weak smile, his eye lid growing heavy "I really appreciate it Cyborg."

Cyborg just smiled, waved a casual salute and walked out leaving Ethan to snuggle with Silkie whilst the rhythmic beat of Terra's heart monitor, the constant tick of the clock and the drowsy mutterings of Silkie sang him to sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: If you made it through the long chapter then I hope you enjoyed it! I haven't forgotten Raven, don't worry. She's going to be a bigger part of the story than the other Titans so she's getting her own introductory chapter. Again it may be a little while until I get another chapter on here. My days are getting busier.**


	6. Chapter 6

_TITANS TOWER, JUMP CITY, CALIFORNIA, USA_

_02:33_

Ethan woke up suddenly. He couldn't remember what he was dreaming, he wasn't even sure if he had even been dreaming anything. Perhaps he had woken up between dreams or something like that. Everything in the room was exactly the same as before he had gone to sleep Terra was still lying where she had been, the clock was still ticking and the BEEP, BEEP, BEEP of the heart monitor in the background. The only thing now was that Silkie had crawled off somewhere probably to find somewhere cosier and less scary. Despite the room looking the same Ethan saw why the Titans reserved this as some sort of infirmary. It was a cold and mechanical room that didn't breathe like a warm home and stank naturally of artificial chemicals. A chill run down Ethan's spine.

"Why does everything look so creepy at night?" Ethan asked Terra, he was half expecting her to say something to make him jump and break the awful eerie silence.

Ethan slipped of the bed. The sound of his shoes hitting the floor echoed through the whole tower and he thought her head someone jump "Azarath Metron Zinthos!" cried a female voice and the door burst open with a ranging darkness in the shape of a raven's claw. Ethan darted towards the window before he realised there was no way he could actually escape. The bird claw grabbed him by the ankle and he screamed falling to the floor. Terra just lay there, oblivious to the chaos around her. The sound of footsteps echoed through the infirmary.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" the voice asked harshly, this was not a voice that you mess around with, this voice was serious.

Ethan squirmed to get a view of the girl. She was about his height, maybe a little taller or a little shorter, he couldn't tell. She wore a long hooded cloak that his her face. The only recognisable feature was her eyes flashing with dark intent in the shadows of her cloak. She took a few steps closer to him and took of her hood. She was pretty but pale, very pale and she reminded Ethan of some sort of spirit. Her eyes were an odd colour, dark but not black with the tiniest purple tint. Her smile was non-existent but Ethan saw in her eyes that she had the capability to laugh and to love. Her hair was short and a dark lilac and in the middle of her forehead was a small red diamond shaped mark that he seemed strangely drawn to look at.

"My name is Ethan." He replied "I came here looking for my brother but he isn't here and then…."

The girl raised an eyebrow "And then?" she asked tapping her foot impatiently as if she was bored and was slowly realising her interrogation of Ethan was wasting her time.

Ethan looked towards Terra "Then Slade attacked."

The girl followed the path of his eyes and when they rested on Terra she gasped and fell back to the floor. The claw of darkness that restrained Ethan seemed to shatter in synchronisation of her collapse and Ethan, nervously, came to help her up.

She accepted his help but seemed to be coping with the news far better "Now I wasn't expecting that today." She said unenthusiastically.

"You're Raven, right?" Ethan asked as he followed her to Terra's bedside "It's just my friend's a big fan of you guys so I sort of know little bit about you already. Which must be strange right? I mean, since you know nothing about me and all…"

'What am I saying?' Thought Ethan, 'What the hell am I saying? I must be making such a fool of myself… wait…. Why do I care?'

Raven broken his train of thought "I take it that they know she's here."

"Pardon?" asked Ethan not sure what she had just said, he couldn't seem to concentrate.

Raven gave him a look that could have sliced an iron bar in half "Do the others know that Terra is here?" she asked making sure Ethan heard every single word perfectly.

Ethan nodded, a little too scared to say anything. She had, after all, just attacked him and was now intensely interrogating him. He didn't seem to mind though which he thought was a little strange.

Raven look down at her old friend "That means… he must…" Raven looked back at Ethan sharply "Do you want to get something to eat?"

Ethan wasn't sure how to answer that question. He couldn't seem to speak or say anything and even if he was unsure if he could actually physically answer. She smiled, he knew she could smile, and it flooded the room with a sort of odd warmth.

"Sure." Ethan managed after a prolonged silence.

She walked out of the infirmary, Ethan following close behind. She turned left and walked down the corridor turned right then left again to the lift then up to the top floor walked down another corridor, turned right, straight down the corridor and into the next room. Ethan trailed behind slowly, his stomach making grumbling sounds as he went. He hadn't noticed before, perhaps that why Raven had asked him in he wanted to something to eat. For a second he had hoped there had been something _more_ in her question. He stopped before he went through the door.

"More…" he whispered, and then he realised.

"Are you okay out there?" asked Raven quietly and Ethan looked up, realising he had just been standing there for about a minute staring into space, or had he been staring at her? Did it make a difference?

He followed her inside the room. It was massive; straight ahead was a large window looking out onto Jump City, one seemed to be slightly tinted like a giant computer screen. In front of it was a semi-circle couch with a circular coffee table and behind it on both sides was a sort of kitchen in two parts that seemed to mirror each other. One had a huge fridge, cooker and what looked like a newly purchased blender. The other side, instead of a fridge, cooker or blender, was covered with various magazines, books, pen, notebooks, CD's and a massive stereo. This was the hub of Titan's Tower.

Raven headed to the fridge and looked through it pulling out a loaf of bread, some cheese and some lettuce "This is all we have left, sorry about that. It was Starfire's turn to go shopping so we didn't end up with anything actually edible."

Ethan laughed, though he wasn't sure if she should as Raven show him another looked but it soon melted into a smiled "That's fine." He told her watching as she put the sandwich together in less than a minute.

Raven pulled a plate out of the cupboard, placed the sandwich on the plate and passed it to Ethan without engaging eye contact "Here we go." She said quickly before walking towards the door.

"Wait. How do I get back?" Ethan asked, she turned around again and gave yet another one of her 'what did you say?' looks.

"Just sleep in here. There should be a blanket over there somewhere." She walked out without looking back.

Ethan search around for a blanket and soon found it in the cupboard under the big stereo. He took his sandwich and laid down on the sofa, laying the itchy blanket over himself. He ate his sandwich quickly but it didn't seem to satisfy him. He was just sos tired. He had travelled a so far and his life had altered so much since the other day. He wondered if Naomi or Owen had made it to Jump City. They would be amazed when he told them everything. It would send Owen into a fit of jealously when he discovered that he had been saved by Cyborg, been greeted by Robin in Titan's Tower, met their beloved pet and mascot Silkie and even had a sandwich made by the mysterious Raven. Ah… Raven… beautiful Raven… Ethan snapped himself out of his infatuated trance but it wasn't long before she was back in her mind again. He knew there was something growing inside of him, a feeling of longing growing inside of him. Just the very thought of being near her made him smile. He could only dream of where it would lead.

"No, Ethan." He told himself "You'll probably be gone by morning. Another memory soon forgotten, and never revisited… you may remember her for the rest of your life but she will never remember you."


End file.
